Budget Jade Druid Deck List Guide (Kobolds and Catacombs)

Our Budget Jade Druid deck list guide for the Kobolds and Catacombs expansion will teach you how to play this Midrange Druid list. This Budget Jade Druid guide includes Mulligans, Gameplay Strategy, Card Substitutions, and Combos/Synergies!

Introduction to Budget Jade Druid

Jade Druid has been a factor in the Hearthstone meta ever since the release of Mean Streets of Gadgetzan and the implementation of the Jade Golem mechanic. Budget Jade Druid, while missing some important legendaries, is still a very powerful list on the back of Jade Idol and the new Spreading Plague. Our Jade Druid budget guide will walk you through mulligans, play strategy, and learning how to upgrade the deck.

Kobolds and Catacombs Update

Jade Druid had gone down a bit in power ever since the nerfs to Innervate and Spreading Plague, but that doesn’t mean it still isn’t strong! Kobolds and Catacombs has brought along a couple of new interesting pieces, but only one of them is likely going to be core to the deck. Lesser Jasper Spellstone is the piece that will likely continue to see play in the distant future. It tries to fill one of the roles Druid struggles with which is minion removal. However, due to this being a budget version of the deck it might be a bit harder to upgrade because you aren’t running Malfurion the Pestilent which upgrades your hero power (it also gains 5 armor the turn its played) and Ultimate Infestation that gives you 5 Armor when cast. It is still worth running though because you can upgrade it with your hero power and Earthen Scales.

The card that could see play but isn’t directly necessary is Greedy Sprite. It does help ramp, but the Deathrattle means there are ways for your opponent to deny you the ramp option. The other problem is that you are already running Jade Blossom at the 3-mana spot which also accelerates your Jade production.

Budget Jade Druid Mulligan Guide

Wild Growth and Jade Blossom are your absolute keeps. Mire Keeper is a debatable keep if you are missing either of those, and is better against a control list. If you have one of the ramp cards then you can keep Tar Creeper if you think you are against an aggressive deck. You can also keep Jade Idol if you have one of the ramp cards, but always play the first one as a minion and do not add three back to your deck (it dilutes your deck, you’d rather draw into cards that are already in there). I wouldn’t keep Lesser Jasper Spellstone either, it isn’t accelerating your board and you want to be proactive.

Budget Jade Druid Play Strategy

Accelerating your mana pool is the name of the game. Now because this is a budget deck, you have to be a bit more cautious with your Nourish. In the meta version of Jade Druid you can pretty much always use it for ramp because you have Ultimate Infestation. In this budget version you might need to draw cards more often because replenishing your hand revolves around the less reliable Gadgetzan Auctioneer and cheap spells combination. This also means that you will need to hold certain cards so you can cycle later. Earthen Scales, Jade Idol, and Lesser Jasper Spellstone are great candidates for this.

If you are able to ramp up early then you really just want to control the board and survive against aggressive decks. Spreading Plague is one of your most valuable assets against these more aggro lists. If you land a big one you can usually soften up your opponent’s board for a Swipe. This gives you more time and allows you to build up your Golems and cycle with Auctioneer.

Against slower decks is where this deck really shines. Most Control decks just can’t deal with your larger and larger minions and will eventually fold to the pressure. Try to prioritize building up your Golems as much as possible. Be a little more greedy with how wide you spread your board, control decks will usually be able to clear at least one board so hold back enough that you can build it back up if this happens.

Future Card Replacements for Budget Jade Druid

Jade Druid is a great deck to build towards because it has continued to see play throughout the history of its existence.

• 2x Gadgetzan Auctioneer > Ultimate Infestation – While Innervate has been nerfed, UI is still one of the most powerful cards in Hearthstone. It allows you to cut the majority of the Gadgetzan package (Auctioneers & Earthen Scales) and run more high-powered options.
• 1x Druid of the Claw > Aya Blackpaw – Very strong card in jade lists and can be used in other decks like Evolve Shaman. I would make this your number one priority for legendaries when crafting this deck.
• 1x Druid of the Claw > Malfurion the Pestilent – Great at helping your survive against aggro decks, and can get you out of trouble against burst. I’d craft him before Fandral only because Fandral will be rotating out in 2018.
• 1x Earthen Scales > Fandral Staghelm – Very strong Druid card, but is less important to the class than it once was. Aggro versions of Druid no longer run it, so I’d try to avoid crafting it if you can. If you see yourself playing Wild at any point then it becomes a higher priority.
• 1x Earthen Scales > Kun the Forgotten King – Can lead to huge swing turns, but is at the bottom of the priority list of crafts. The meta version of the deck likes this card, but it isn’t completely necessary. If you have the card you should play it, but if you are on a budget I wouldn’t craft it.

General Replacements for Budget Jade Druid

Here’s just a list of cards you can add to this deck if you happen to be missing any of them and have already made replacements.

• Mind Control Tech – If you are facing a lot of decks that like to extend the board, MC Tech makes for a great option.
• Golakka Crawler – Kind of an awkward card in this deck, but can be good against a lot of the decks running Pirates.
• Greedy Sprite – New ramp card from Kobolds and Catacombs. Not really needed, but could be played if you are missing some cards. This card will likely see play in Druid once the 2018 Standard rotation happens.
• Medivh, the Guardian – Very powerful in combination with Ultimate Infestation and Spreading Plague.